Examination of Pollution Effect for PV Panels in Turkey's Climate Conditions

Over the past few years, the demand for clean and sustainable energy has risen significantly. Governments worldwide have recognized the necessity of transitioning to clean energy sources to reduce and eventually replace traditional ones. One such environmentally friendly solution is solar panels, also known as photovoltaic (PV) systems. These solid-state devices convert sunlight into electrical energy. The main advantage of PV panels lies in their reliance on solar radiation, a clean and renewable energy source. Although the production costs of PV panels have declined over time, they are still considered expensive due to the relatively small market scale. Efforts to lower these costs focus on improving panel efficiency, with scientists working to enhance their performance. The lifespan of PV panels is typically determined through reliability and stress tests designed to assess their performance, durability, and safety. However, these tests often fail to account for all the conditions PV panels encounter in real-world environments. For instance, long-term issues like cell mismatches caused by Manufacturing flaws or natural elements like bird droppings, snow, pollutants, and dust are not always addressed. The dust factor originating from natural pollution is the focus of this study. The power obtained from a PV panel is always made by the manufacturers under standard conditions (Standard test conditions, STC) with 1000 W/m2, 25 centigrade degrees and 1.5 air mass (AM). Turkey has an extraordinary amount of sunlight of 1,527 kWh/m2 per year due to its geographical location. At the same time, it is on its way to becoming a great solar country by attracting attention as it receives the highest amount of radiation among European countries. Although Turkey has strong radiation in solar energy efficiency, it also has different typical environmental factors due to its geographical location and characteristics. Photovoltaic panels are very sensitive devices and are seriously affected by environmental factors (humidity, pressure, dust, wind, rain, bird droppings, etc.).